PRESS RELEASE: Secretary of State Cord Byrd Announces Launch of ¡La Sonada Florida! on Florida Music Tours

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. –

Secretary of State Cord Byrd and the Florida Department of State today announced the launch of Latin Tour, ¡La Sonada Florida! on FloridaMusicTours.com. ¡La Sonada Florida! highlights the Sunshine State’s place in Latin music history. Florida has long been an incubator of major Latin musical talent with many prominent and influential Latin musicians coming out of Florida including Gloria Estefan, Albita Rodriguez, Mau y Ricky and Pitbull.

“Latin music has flourished in Florida since the early 20^th Century and some of the genre’s greatest musicians and most famous recording studios have roots in our state,” said Secretary Byrd. “Through ¡La Sonada Florida! on Florida Music Tours, we are excited to share the rich history of Latin music in the Sunshine State and places where the music is still thriving today.”

In conjunction with the Department of State’s Florida Folklife Program, the Florida Folk Festival will feature multiple performances by Neri Torres and Cortadito, both of whom are featured in ¡La Sonada Florida!

FloridaMusicTours.com is an educational, travel and media website that spotlights Florida’s important role in American musical history and promotes the state as a top destination for music enthusiasts. Each Florida Music Tour acts as an interactive guide to a musical genre or style that takes a visitor through Florida's musical history and across the state to where that music originated and where it can be heard today.

Launched in 2017, the debut Florida Music Tour Florida’s Got the Blues spotlights the history of blues music in Florida as well as related genres of gospel, jazz and rhythm and blues. The Florida Rocks! music tour, launched in 2018, focuses on Florida’s unique influence on rock and roll.

Start your Florida Music Tour today by visiting FloridaMusicTours.com and following Florida Music Tours on Facebook and Twitter.

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About the Division of Arts and Culture
The Florida Department of State’s Division of Arts and Culture is Florida’s legislatively designated state arts agency. The Division promotes the arts and culture as essential to quality of life for all Floridians. To achieve its mission, the Division funds and supports cultural programs that provide artistic excellence, diversity, education, access and economic vitality for Florida’s communities. For more information, visit dos.myflorida.com/cultural.

About The Florida Folklife Program
The Florida Folklife Program, a component of the Florida Department of State's Division of Arts and Culture, documents and presents Florida’s folklife, folklore and folk arts. The program coordinates a wide range of activities and projects designed to increase the awareness of Floridians and visitors alike about Florida’s traditional culture. Established in 1979 by the legislature to document and present Florida folklife, this program is one of the oldest state folk arts programs in the nation. The Florida Folklife Program is funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts’ Folk and Traditional Arts Program. For more information about Florida folklife, visit dos.myflorida.com/cultural/programs/florida-folklife-program/